Business Discussions

  Do you have a question about QuickBooks but haven't gotten around to reaching out to us yet? QuickBooks Experts are live now on this post to answer! Simply reply to this post with your question. We'll take questions this morning, 2/22, from 8am - 12pm PST.  Topics include, but aren't limited to: Invoicing, Payroll, Account Management, Product Features, and more.   Click here to ask your question. We look forward to helping you get the most out of QuickBooks.

Good afternoon everyone! It's Fridayyyy! I hope you are just as excited as I am! Before the day end, and since February is also known as Black History month, I wanted to share this article by ABC that highlights black-owned small businesses that you can support this month and even for years to come. Here are a few of my favorites that they shared:    Beaux and PawsThis business was started by a young man named Sir Darius to help shelter dogs get adopted. He sells beautiful bowties for dogs. With every purchase, he donates one to a shelter pet to attract a potential family.    Uncle NearestUncle Nearest is the most awarded American Whiskey or Bourbon in 2019 and 2020. They have acquired over 150 awards worldwide since their debut in 2017. Nearest Green is the first African American master distiller on record in the US.    Ni'Abri BeautyThis brand was also started by a young entrepreneur named Nia Phillips. She sells 100% vegan and cruelty-free makeup. Nia w

Welcome, everyone! Did you know that Pinterest has 459 million monthly active users worldwide, including 98 million in the United States? You might be saying, " Umm, okay, and why is this important?" Well, let me tell you! This is important because this is another market you can tap into if you haven't already! Christian Pollack from Entrepreneur shared 5 Pinterest marketing strategies to optimize your content. Here is what she had to say:     Set upThe writer's first step is to create a business account on Pinterest. Once that is made, enter as much information as you can, such as your mission statement, the availability of your products, etc., so potential customers can get to know more about your business.   Account Bio and BoardsWith Pinterest, customers usually use keywords or phrases to assist them when browsing throughout the app. A great idea is to use your account bio and boards and add keywords relevant to the product you are selling and common enough tha

Good afternoon everyone, and welcome back to the QuickBooks Community! When last have you taken the time to review your organization? It is a great idea to do this within your business from time to time to see where improvements can be made or changes. Here are some questions that would challenge your perspective of  your organization:   Is there a culture of excellence within your organization? During your day-to-day, how much time do you spend on things that don't add customer value? Do you think your employees are being obedient or actually committed to the organization's success? Why are your employees leaving? Would you do business with yourself if you were a customer? Is everyone on the same page? Are your resources being appropriately used or being wasted? Is your business performance consistent with your business goals?   These are just a few that give you an idea of the questions that should be answered when evaluating your firm. If you have any questions to a

“Nothing like waking up and reading negative views on your business page,” said no one ever. While it can be hard to get this kind of feedback, today I want to discuss Jonathan Bill’s article on our blog about why those reviews are important and how best to handle them.   If you’re worried about those negative reviews deterring potential customers, know that 95% of people suspect fake reviews if they don’t see any negative ones. We’re all human and anticipate someone may have a negative experience. What does make a difference is seeing someone respond to that negative review in an attentive way. Like having an elephant in the room, bad reviews should not be ignored. Use it as an opportunity to flex those customer service skills and show people that you are present and that you care. Bill writes, “Try to address a negative review transparently and quickly. An honest response is best.”   I encourage you to keep up on your reviews page so that follow up is fast. Ask them their p

Happy Monday! If you can't stop giggling at the singing cat in the QuickBooks & Mailchimp ad during the big game, you're not alone. I thought it might be nice to start the work week off right, and focus on what matters:  Our pets! 😻 🐶 🐦   tl;dr, reply to show us the pets who make your work days better.    Meet Brie. I adopted Brie only 2 months ago. Brie had a tough start in life, so she has a few special needs, and that's easy peasy! Brie is 3 years old, loves snacks, cuddles, and rubbing her face on literally everything. She makes every work day better and brighter.      Working with Brie nearby is the best part of every day. The second best part of every day is when I'm in a Zoom meeting and someone's pet makes a cameo. Last week, during our Coffee & Donuts live Zoom event with Accountants, it was especially awesome when a cat jumped up on one Accountant's desk to join our conversation. Whether it's barking, head-butting the l

I don’t know about you, but reading is something I am always trying to do more of. It can be hard to prioritize but recently I have been getting into nonfiction. It’s quite a change from my usual murder-mystery genre, but I have found there’s a lot of great tips to apply to life and I think a couple books would be great for business owners. Here are a couple of my recommendations:     The Power of Moments by Chip and Dan HeathWant to know what “magic moments” you can create for you customers? What makes a moment truly stick out to someone, and lead them to remember it forever? This book talks about how things can leave an impression and help you be more intentional about creating those moments so they aren’t accidental.   Radical Candor by Kim ScottThis book clearly outlines how to have “radical candor” as a boss. What does that mean? It’s a way to lead that emphasizes honesty, relationship, and heart. Scott highlights the common managing failures and how to build trust

Welcome back to the Business Discussion Board! Or maybe just, welcome! If it's your first time visiting us, it's great to have you here. This area of the Community is where we chat about just about any and all business topics. Next up is an article I found from clintoncourrier.com that discusses the reasons behind why more and more people are starting their own businesses. Let's take a look...   CreativityThe pandemic has left the majority of us with the feeling of being in a rut. As a means to think outside of the box and to still be able to work we've seen many becoming more and more creative. This creativity has lead to many new home based businesses.   Direct-to-CustomerOne study recently showed that newly developed businesses, nearly 80% of them in fact, are selling directly to customers. This direct-to-customer, or B2C (business-to-consumer), is the business model of choice. With this method you cut out the middle-man, therefore there isn't a chain of money tr

Hi there, friend. Thanks for joining us! Tax season is upon us once again and maybe you're braving this task on your own. If you are and seem to notice some things just aren't adding up, this may be just the post for you. Today I want to share a few bookkeeping mistakes to be mindful of and how to fix them moving forward.   Too Many CategoriesMany business owners want to get really specific in their books. While this isn't always a bad thing, there is such a thing as having too many categories. The problem with this is that many of them end up being very similar. For example; "office supplies", "miscellaneous supplies" and "materials" can all be grouped under one of these names. This can be fixed by removing any categories that aren't related to your business, renaming any confusing titles, and/or combining categories that are basically the same thing.   Not reconciling bank accountsWhen was the last time you reconciled your accounts? Hopefully the answer is, "last month!" bu

Hi, Any Canadian expert in eCommerce bookkeeper here? I'm planning to start an eCommerce business, but I'm based in Canada.So most of the customers will be in the US and other countries.And I want to accept in USD only, then I can also pay my supplier in USD, no double-conversion between USD and CAD. Conversion can add up a lot! Here's how I might structure the banking for my business as a Canadian. (as I saw a lot of Canadian selling in the US doing that way, not sure am I right or not)1. U.S based USD Business bank account (To receive USD from customer purchase, and Paypal)2. Canada based USD Business bank account (Receive USD from my U.S based bank also pay off the credit card)3. Canada based USD business credit card (purchase products from suppliers, pay bills that in USD cuz Canadian can't open U.S based credit card)4. Canada Based CAD business Bank account (Paying myself in CAD, and pay the income return)5. Canada Based CAD credit card (stuff that needs to use in Canada

Hello Community! Our QuickBooks blog is filled with great information for business owners and today I have a good one. We talk often about paying employees and cash flow into your business, but what about the bosses? When it’s time to pay yourself, are you paying yourself a salary, or owner’s draw? An article from our blog breaks it all down for you so you can understand your options.Let’s start with the basics: owner’s draw vs salary.     Owner’s Draw: The business owner takes funds out of the business for personal use. Draws can happen at regular intervals, or when needed. Salary: The business owner determines a set wage or amount of money for themselves, and then cuts a paycheck for themselves every pay period.   There are a lot of reasons you may choose one over the other, but the most important factor is how you classify your business. The main types of business entities include: C Corporation (C Corp) S Corporation (S Corp) Sole Propri

Hello everyone! If this is your first time visiting the Business Discussion board, we’re so glad you’re here! You are now part of a growing group of business men and women creating, collaborating, and connecting across the globe via the QuickBooks Community. Today I wanted to take a minute to share an article that was posted on the QuickBooks Resource Center. This particular piece focuses on how to build financial projections for your startup.   There are a few boxes to check when it comes to things to learn about starting a business and how to build financial projections is one of them. This is important for many reasons however the article highlights, "For external funding, financial projections help convince lenders and investors that your business will not only be profitable but also offer them a return on investment. For internal purposes, accurate forecasting enables you to budget for your new business as well as benchmark your milestones."   What Fo

Good afternoon Community! Do you know how realtors often say, "Location, location, location!"? The equivalent to that in the small business realm would be, "Network, network, network!" Today I want to share an article posted on entrpreneur.com that cover several ways to become a better networkers any why it's important to your business.   Always add value firstWhat does it mean to add value to a business relationship? This means connecting with people in a way that provides help or guidance. There are several easy ways to do this, such as: sending a related article, sharing a shortcut or tool to make their work easier, introducing your contact to another who has similar interests.   Make it all about the other personConnecting with others at functions is an excellent way to build your network. Sometimes, more often than not, the person's favorite topic is themselves. Everyone likes to share their business, and that's understandable! The article outlines one way to s

Hello, my Community comrades, and welcome back to our discussion page. This question has been lingering in my mind, and I'm intrigued to know your thought process. How do you know that you are making the right decision? Not only in the business aspect but overall in everything you do.   This week, I had many hard decisions to make that could potentially be life-changing, both business-wise and personally. With these changing environments, I had to lay out all options. Can I juggle working full-time, managing a small business, taking care of my family, helping my siblings with homework, and still have time to focus on myself or my social life? Phew, that was a lot to digest. Anyhow, I figured I could share with you my process of deciding what's best.    The first thing I do is research. I can not stress how important this is. I would take a week or so (depending on the situation, it may be more) and dive in to gain knowledge and understand the various topics and conditio

Happy Friday, and welcome back to the QuickBooks Community! Do you want to take your business to the next level? Well, tune in! Entrepreneur shared three uses of how Artificial Intelligence can change your business. Let's see what they say:   But first, let's define what Al is? According to the writer, this is a "computer system that can perform tasks that are usually considered too complicated for humans." This can solve a lot of problems within the business because these systems are able to pick up patterns and help make decisions. Here are the three best uses of artificial intelligence:   Customer ServiceFor small businesses, this can be instrumental in customer service. Al is able to evaluate what customers need and find solutions. If there are many customer requests, using this can assist with keeping up with the demand.   Predictive analyticsWant to make smarter decisions? Predictive analytics can help with this by assisting in sales and marketing purposes which is

Good afternoon Community! Thanks for joining us once again here in the Business Discussion space. We've spoken a few times about using social media to build your business. More specifically the different platforms available but today I want to share with you how to build your own hashtags to use within each platform to bring even more attention your way.   Small businesses usually use a set of hashtags to maximize views. I like to think of these as building blocks starting with the broadest and narrowing it down to the most specific area. Here's how to build your tags to add to every post:   IndustryThe first block should be your industry. To put it simply, this is your economic activity. One example would be #realestate   NicheNext up is your niche. A niche in this instance being, "a specialized segment of the market for a particular kind of product or service." #luxuryrealestate #commercialrealestate   The SearchGetting even more detailed, this next building block

It’s a new year and the possibilities are endless. Maybe some of you are doing your research before starting a business, or already have your business and are looking for some advice. Kat Boogard has an article in our Resource Center that gives you a list of essential and unnecessary startup expenses. I chose a favorite from each category. Let’s get to it!     Essential:    Business planTypical cost range: $1,000–$20,000   What’s a business plan? It’s a formal document that will make sure you have an outlined plan of your goals for your business, such as:   Description of your company, products, and services Market research to identify your ideal customer and potential opportunities Competitive analysis to understand what similar companies you’re up against Marketing and sales strategies to grow your business Business financials and projections  It sounds like a lot, and it can be. Your business plan will require some time to get the information, r

Is there an update of QBO calculating finance charges?  I understand how we can assess a late fee, I just don't know where to start to manually calculate an interest based finance charge for our receivables.

Good afternoon everyone! I hope this work week has been good to you and not too crazy since returning from a nice holiday break.   So it's 2022 and you're ready to start hiring new team members. There are several traits to consider when choosing the right candidate for a job position within your company. Hardworking, honest, punctual, trustworthy, creative, works well with others, you know the checklist. But what about the legal side of hiring? This article from uschamber.com breaks it down for us.   Apply for an EINFirst things first, before hiring employees you need a payroll system, and to have a payroll system you must have a federal EIN. This is a number, unique to your business, that's used for tax identification purposes. You can apply for an EIN on the IRS website and you'll just need to provide documentation such as a social security number and the basic information regarding the company, including corporation status.   Register with your state’s unemp

Happy Wednesday and Happy New Year, everyone. In the spirit of "new," let's talk about "New Opportunities," especially recognizing new opportunities for your business. I would like to give you a few pointers regarding this. Before we get started, remember this, the key is to understand the type of opportunity you are looking for. To do this, you would need to establish or set goals to determine why that makes it a reasonable possibility. At times, these new opportunities do not have the desired outcomes, but don't be discouraged. Get back on the saddle, and keep trying.   Does the product or service meet customers' needs?This is probably one of the most crucial factors. You need to examine the circumstances, determine if it is worth it, and see if customers' needs are being fulfilled. Could these new services solve difficulties for clients? These are questions you should be thinking about. No one wants to waste time, energy, and money on something that wouldn't reel in profits or

  Before 2022 gets too much older, I wanted to sit down and take a look at 2021 and see how the Community has fared.     Lets start with the numbers:   Overall we continued to grow the community, with increases in almost all metrics.  I narrowed the focus down to the Q&A forums for this year's review since that is where the bulk of activity is, but even so we put up some impressive numbers for 2021, with 37,503,329 views and 12,893,266 unique visitors for the year.     One area that I am particularly excited about is the increase of mobile traffic to our site.  When looking at the breakdown of desktop to mobile views/visits/visitors, we are seeing a steady but dramatic increase every year.  In 2021, we had 2,529,738 unique mobile visitors to the forums, which accounts for just under 20% of our total unique visitors.  This is fantastic because it tells us that not only are people on mobile finding the site, but that t

Hello, everyone, and welcome to the QuickBooks Community! I hope all is well and you are getting through all you have to accomplish. Quick question, want to boost morale in your workplace? Well, I have a few ideas to help with this. Let's dive in!   For holidays and special occasions, since we are in the Christmas season, why not plan a family Christmas Party to foster a family-friendly environment. Possibly go the extra mile and hire a Santa for the children to meet and if you can afford to, give them a little token. You can encourage those who may not have kids to bring another family member or pets.   Another idea could be to host a Potluck! Have employees bring their favorite dishes or desserts, and you can even kick it up a knock and have a themed potluck like Hawaiin Luau, 5 Ingredients or Less, or A Tour of the Mediterranean, to name a few.   For ongoing events, an idea could be to host a weekly "Best of" Contest. For example, create a poll and have co-w

Hello Community! Hope you are feeling accomplished and rested now that we’re at the end of the week. I know it’s been a busy one, but here’s your reminder that you’re doing a great job.   Today I’m discussing this article from Inc.com that talks about understanding your customer’s pain points. I know that phrase gets thrown around a lot in the business world, but every business owner wants their service or product to fulfill their customer’s needs. This is important even for the most experienced people in the biz. So what does this mean and how can you apply it?   Understanding their pain points helps you know where you may need to make changes and how to be more effective in your marketing. Inc.com has 4 tips for how to accomplish this.   1. Be Mindful of the type of problem you’re trying to solve Common problems are pricing, productivity or convenience. It can also be a mix of them as well. Don’t become so focused on one issue that you don’t

Business owners everywhere depend on their local community to be successful. In our QuickBooks Blog, Carla Morla is giving advice on how to market locally during this holiday season. In a recent study done, 72% of U.S. adults have make it more of a priority to support local business as opposed to pre-pandemic times. This is great news for business owners but how do you get your name out there? I’m going to pick my top 3 from Morla’s article and share them here. Let’s do it!     Be easy to find onlineThere are so many different platforms available to us these days . If you already have a website, try creating a social media page or use other directories like Nextdoor, Apple maps, Google, etc. The more places you are, the more customers will find you.   Connect with your local communityHoliday parades? Markets? Fundraisers? Getting out there puts your face and brand right in front of people and also around other business owners. Consider partnering with another local busi

Like many people, many business owners are finding themselves on Zoom or video calls way more in the past two years than ever. Although it can be taxing, it’s a great way to interact with partners and clients, while keeping in touch with your team. I’m here today with some tips on how to make sure you look your best on camera!     Use a ring light or opt for natural lightNatural light will always be your best bet so finding a spot with a nice amount of windows will have you looking refreshed. If you don’t have access to a bright room,  look into getting a ring light. This is what a lot of online/social media influencers use and it helps you look professional and gives the video a great look.   Camera positionIt may feel natural to be really close to your computer, but giving yourself a good arms length is ideal. Laptop cameras tend to be a wider angle so this distance prevents features being distorted. It also puts your face and body in great proportions within the